


Life and Other Consequences

by stories11



Series: The Blue Roses Verse [2]
Category: Steam Powered Giraffe
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-05-15
Updated: 2013-11-13
Packaged: 2017-12-11 23:58:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,073
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/804753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stories11/pseuds/stories11
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel to the fan fic Rabbi</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

One year after Paige’s death...

“Hold still!” Lil’ Steve shouts, chasing Lil’ Mike down the hallway, attempting to aim his bow as he runs.

Lil’ Mike skids around a corner and bolts into a nearby room. Seeing Steve he runs for cover behind the man’s ankle as Lil’ Steve comes sliding through the doorway after him. 

Steve looks down at the dolls with confusion before leaning down, scooping Lil’ Mike into the palm of his hand, and lifting him out of the reach of Lil’ Steve’s arrows. “What’s going on here?”

Lil’ Mike Mike holds onto Steve’s hand as though he would fall if he let go.

“I’m gonna kill him!” Lil’ Steve shouts, only resulting in Lil’ Mike gripping tighter.

“You’re not killing anyone.” Steve says firmly, as he reaches down and plucks the bow and arrows from his hands with ease.

“Fine. I’ll just use headbutts instead!” Lil’ Steve shouts up to the terrified Lil’ Mike.

“I don’t know what I did to make you hate me hate me so much!”

Steve leans down with a sigh, picking up Lil’ Steve in his other hand, careful to keep them apart.

“You know exactly what you did!” Lil’ Steve shouts, headbutting Steve’s hand in an attempt to make him let go.

Lil’ Mike squirms in Steve’s grip before jumping to the ground with a small yelp and running out of the room. Lil Steve is soon to follow, with cries of “Get back here so I can headbutt you!”

Steve stands bewildered for a moment then shakes his head and goes back to work on his new soundboard, figuring they could work out their problems for themselves.

....

Michael and Matt sit in one of the rehearsal rooms, mindlessly working out the basic notes of a new song. As they finish their first iteration of the music, Matt looks up at Michael with a slight smile, then a frown as he speaks up. “Hey Michael?”

Michael looks up at him as he sets down the guitar. “Yeah?”

“Why do you have two shadows?” He asks in confusion.

Michael looks behind him, surprised to see he has two shadows before giving a soft shrug. “I don’t know, why do you have...” He takes a moment, counting. “Seven?”

Before Matt can respond Rabbit comes into the room, carrying his hat in hand, whistling almost like an owner trying to call their dog back. “C-c-come on, let’s get you all home.” He calls to the extra shadows. He goes behind Matt, plucking one of the extra shadows from the wall, and dropping it into his hat. He looks at the humans for a moment giving them a small nod as he herds out the extra shadows. “Mr. R-r-reed,   
Matt...” He acknowledges as he goes.

Matt raises an eyebrow at Michael, “What was that?”

Michael gives a shrug. “Rabbit’s doing something strange, must be Tuesday.” He shakes his head slightly before picking up his guitar again. “Try it again from the top?”

Matt forces himself to relax slightly, still not used to the manor. “Yeah, let’s try it again.”

....

“Wait, you’re leaving? You’re just going to leave me alone in this madhouse? I’ve only been here for like six months. I’m supposed to be learning and you’re supposed to be the one teaching me.” Carolina says, frowning at Brianna as she packs her bags.

“You’re not going to be alone, Peter’s called in Bunny and she’ll be coming in from Kazooland she’ll be here in a couple of days. I’m sorry, but I have to go. I love this job, but family comes first, and maybe I’ll come back someday, but it’s not in the cards, at least not at the moment.” She says with a soft sigh as she closes the suitcase and zips it up. She looks at the Walter Girl in training and offers a soft smile. “Don’t worry, you’re going to be fine, just... try to keep Rabbit out of trouble and don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.” She reaches out and pulls Carolina into a hug.

Carolina hugs her back, almost on the verge of tears, Brianna is almost like a sister to her, and it hurts to be losing her. “I just wish you didn’t have to go...” She says quietly.

“I’m sorry, but this is something I have to do.” She says, before pulling away. “Now keep your head up, and smile, they’re all depending on you now.” She says, grabbing her suitcase off of the bed. “Don’t be afraid to call me if you need anything, I’ll always be there for you, no matter what.”

Carolina nods, pausing for a moment. “Does Spine know yet?” She asks, worried she would have to be the one to break the news, knowing that he is fond of Brianna as a friend.

Brianna shakes her head. “Peter’s going to tell him tonight, it’ll be easier for all of us that way.”

“You should tell him yourself, he’s earned that much.” Carolina says, offering a sad smile before she takes her leave of the room.

Brianna sits down on the edge of the bed with a soft sigh, knowing Carolina’s right, but not wanting to admit to it.

A few minutes later there’s a gentle knock on the doorframe as The Spine stands just out of her sight line, to provide the courtesy of semi-privacy despite the lack of a door. “Brianna?” He asks, “Carolina told me you have something you want to talk to me about? She made it sound important, I thought it would be best if I came as soon as I could.”

Brianna internally curses and thanks Carolina, there’s no way to avoid it now. “She’s right, there is something I need to talk to you about, and I don’t think you’re going to like it. You might want to come in and take a seat...”

Spine walks into the room, now worried that something is wrong. The first thing he spies is that Brianna is in street clothes, not her Walter Girl uniform that hangs in her closet, still in the garment bag from the cleaners. “Is something wrong?” He asks before he spies the suitcase. “Are you going somewhere?”

She nods. “Yes, I’m....” She stops and has to take a breath to calm her nerves, it’s more difficult to say more than she originally thought it would be. “I’m going home.”

“But.... you are home?” Spine questions more than states. “You’ve been living here for years now, what do you mean you’re going home?” He asks, brows furrowing and his mouth clicks into a frown.

“I mean home. Home as in going back to my family.” She says, barely holding back tears. “There was an emergency, and they’re bringing everyone together, and that includes me. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier.” She says, looking down.

“Tell me earlier...? How long have you known? When are you leaving?” He asks, mind whirring with the new information alarmed by the sudden loss of an employee, and more than that, a treasured friend. “We have to get your affairs in order, figure out how long you’ll be gone, figure out pay schedule, does Peter know?”

She sighs again. “I’ve known for a few weeks that I’m leaving, Peter’s known as long as I have. My flight leaves in a few hours, and my taxi should be here any minute now...” She trails off, blinking back tears. “Spine.... I’m not coming back. Not anytime soon.”

“Oh.” He says, caught completely off guard by all of this “Well.... that changes things, doesn’t it.” He says, a bit dumbstruck as he walks up to her and wraps his arms around her. “It was a pleasure to know you, Miss Brianna.” He says softly.

She hugs him back, tears in her eyes. “How many times do I have to tell you to stop calling me ‘Miss’?” She asks in a whisper.

“I just wanted to hear you say that one more time...” He rumbles in a deep baritone. “You will be sorely missed.”

She pulls away from him after a few moments. “Goodbye, Spine.” She says softly, trying to hasten her exit so he won’t see her cry. She grabs at her suitcase and walks away leaving him standing there, dumbstruck. She walks out of the manor and out to the cab that’s pulled up only moments before, it’s only as she’s sliding into the back seat she can hear Spine calling her name from the front steps of the house, but she pays him no mind with silent tears rolling down her cheeks. 

The cab driver glances at the door and then to her. “Hey, I think he’s talking to you.”

She shakes her head. “Just drive.”

Spine tries desperately to call her name and catch her attention, but the taxi’s already pulled away by the time he reaches where the cab had been parked. “You forgot your necklace...” He whispers to the empty street, looking down at the small silver necklace he had given her years ago for her birthday. He slips it into his breast pocket, in hopes that maybe someday, she would come back for it, but for now, he turns on his heel and quietly walks back to the manor and to the seclusion of his precious Hall of Wires.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2  
The Spine was upset over Brianna leaving, arguably more so than when Holly left, but he refuses to let himself spiral into the same depression as before. Rabbit was sympathetic to start, but after three days, he was beginning to grow more and more annoyed by The Spine. Rather than being passive and secluded, Spine had taken to watching over his older brother’s shoulder, ensuring he does nothing to get himself, or anyone else, into trouble, but of course, Rabbit viewed this as The Spine being a buzzkill.  
“Sp-spine, I can l-look afta mys-self.” He snapped, crossing his arms over his chest and puffing up annoyed clouds of steam, finally fed up with being babied by the titanium bot. “Ya d-don’t have to be lookin’ ova my shoulda all the time.”  
“I’m not looking after you, I’m merely making sure you don’t get in trouble.” He rumbles in a low baritone, adjusting his tie slightly.  
The copper bot simply frowns more deeply. “That’s the same thing as lookin’ afta me, Sp-spine. I know you’re upset ova Brianna leaving, you need to l-let it out. You can’t keep w-watchin’ ova my shoulda’, you gotta f-find somethin’ else to entertain yourself, she’ll be b-back when she c-can.” His expression softened slightly at the mention of the Walter Girl, he knew how difficult this was for him, but also annoyed by his brother’s smothering amounts of attention.  
“Of course I’m upset about her leaving, but I can’t let that upset me, not after what happened last time...” He regretted the words the moment they left his lips, but he couldn’t take them back. When he saw the obvious pain flicker through his brother’s bi-colored optics, he reached out, resting a hand on the bot’s shoulder. “Rabbit, I didn’t mean-”  
“I know what h-h-happened last time, Spine. You did mean it. It’s m-my fault she died, and you wanna m-make sure is don’t happen to anyone else.” He cut him off and pulled away from his touch, the heartbreak scrawled across his faceplate obvious. He didn’t say anything else, simply ran off towards the back of the manor.  
When Rabbit’s location disappeared from the Walter Wi-Fi, The Spine didn’t question it, he simply sat down, sighing and breathed out a large plume of steam as he placed his head in his hands. That wasn’t what he meant to have happen.  
.....  
Peter made sure his clothes were clean and pristine as he was careful to avoid Rabbit’s practical jokes and Hatchworth’s rather messy sandwich making, as well as polishing his mask until the wood shined. He wanted to be absolutely sure that he looked nice and presentable for the new arrival, though it isn’t likely to last for long. He made his way down the winding stairs with a nervous smile beneath the mask. Things had been a bit tense in the manor since Brianna had left, but he hoped that the arrival of Bunny might help.  
Carolina was already waiting not far from the door, smiling slightly to be polite, but still somewhat upset at the loss of a friend. She started to stand up at the entrance of her boss, but he simply gave a polite nod that says it’s alright for her to remain sitting.  
Exactly on time, a tall woman in an immaculate Walter Girl dress strolled up to the door. A friendly smile played across her black lips, stark against her paper white skin. Thick black hair framed a gentle face, and she gave a slight wave to Carolina and Peter.  
“Are you Blue Matter Mistress Bunny?” Peter asked, before he answered himself, “Of course you must be, why else would you be here? Hello, Miss Bunny, as you probably already know, I’m Peter Walter VI, and this is Walter Girl Carolina.” He gestured to the Walter Girl who had gotten onto her feet, and waved back at Bunny. Peter grabbed the woman’s hand and shook it vigorously, as he grinned nervously beneath his mask.  
Bunny smiled and shook his hand in return, nodding in confirmation as he asks her name, a silent laugh as he continues on.  
“Welcome to Walter Manor.” Carolina chimed in when it became apparent Peter had finished. She was a bit surprised that Bunny hadn’t said a single word yet, but she didn’t comment on it, she figured Bunny would speak when she wanted to.  
As if he could read her mind, Peter offered an explanation for Bunny’s silence. “Bunny was born a mime, she can’t speak, but she has her own methods of communication.”  
“Oh.” Carolina said, a bit curious and surprise, but willing to figure this out. “Well, would you like to see our room Miss Bunny?” She asks politely.  
Bunny gave a smile, and made a series of motions that roughly translated to mean ‘Yes, but you don’t have to call me miss, Bunny is fine.’  
The Walter Girl smiled and gestured to Bunny, a bit surprised she’d been able to interpret those motions but doesn’t question it as they begin their trek across the house.  
“Well, Bunny, I’ll leave you in Carolina’s very capable hands.” He slipped away, glad that that had gone far better than he had expected.  
....  
Rabbit didn’t come home for hours, and when he did, he didn’t use a conventional method. He knew Spine would be paying special attention to the doors, and so he decided to use a less conventional method.  
His copper joints creaked loudly as he tried, unsuccessfully, to be quiet as he snuck in through the music room window. His grip slipped as he got part way through the window and sent him crashing to the ground, landing in a heap with a loud crash as he startled the drummer, who had been setting up a new drum kit.  
He moved to Rabbit’s side and helped im up carefully, concern etched into his features. “You alright there, Rabbit?” He asked, more than a bit confused as to why he had tried to come in through a window instead of the open doorway, but more concerned with the fall that the elder bot took, than anything else.  
Rabbit groaned loudly as he got up, rubbing his forehead with one hand, one of the more human like traits he had unintentionally acquired over the years. “Yeah, I’m f-f-fine...” His clothes were slightly disheveled, clumps of dirt and grass clung to the knees and shins of his pants, and new streaks from freshly shed oily tears stained his faceplate, several smeared across from trying to wipe them away. It was almost painfully obvious where he’d been.  
“Is there any particular reason you decided to try to use the window instead of coming in through the doorway?” He asked, fairly sure he already knew the answer, but asking anyways in case he had another reason.  
“Just tr-tr-tryin’ to change things up a bit.” He shrugged. “No big d-deal.”  
Matt frowned as he saw straight through the rather obvious and pathetic lie. “You know, Spine was looking for you earlier. He seemed pretty upset, the last time I saw him he was near the front door, waiting for you to come back.”  
The copper automaton rubbed the back of his neck nervously and looked rather guilty, which confirmed Matt’s suspicions. “Was he? I didn’t n-n-notice...”  
“Maybe you should go talk to him, whatever is is that he wanted to see you about seemed pretty upset.” He prompted as gently as he could. He hated to see either bot so upset.  
“I’ll g-go see him later... I’m sure he’s j-just fine.” He looked away from the human, ”I have some th-things I’ve gotta do... s-sorry for botherin’ ya’, I’ll just g-get goin’...” He said as he turned to walk away, his head hung low as he internally kicked himself for having upset and worried The Spine.  
Before he could get more than a step away, Matt grabbed his wrist for a moment, just long enough to stop him. “You know you can talk to us, Rabbit... We want to help you, and keeping it all bottled up... it’s not good for you.” He said before he released the bot to do as he pleased.  
The copper bot gave pause before he turned and gently hugged Matt. “Th-thanks Matt... might h-have t’ take you up on that s-sometime...” Before Matt could respond, he left the room, headed for the secret spot where he and Paige had made so many happy memories.  
The room seemed cold and dim without her there, and as he sat there alone, all he wanted to do was hold her again, one last time. “I’m so s-s-s-sorry Paige...” He said softly. “Spine’s r-r-right... it’s all my f-fault you’re gone...” Oily tears slid over the copper and oxidation for hours on end before he finally emerged once more. He wiped them away, and quietly walked through the manor as if nothing had happened. He even made a point of giving The Spine a cheery hello before he walked away as he tried his still broken heart.


End file.
